10 weeks' jail for condo gardener who struck co-worker with garden hoe after being called 'fat', 'transgender' in Hokkien
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- Sim Lek Yam was working as a gardener at Rafflesia Condominium when he struck a 64-year-old cleaner twice with a garden hoe
- Sim and the cleaner Tan Im Choon had had frequent disputes prior to the incident
- Sim claimed that during this particular dispute, Mr Tan had called him a transgender in Hokkien, which made him lose his temper
- Mr Tan sustained a 10cm-long cut on the back of his head and a 5cm-long cut on his upper back from the assault
- Sim was sentenced to 10 weeks' jail
BY
JASMINE ONG
Published December 4, 2023Updated December 4, 2023
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SINGAPORE — Unable to control his temper after being called fat and a transgender, Sim Lek Yam struck his co-worker twice with a garden hoe, resulting in a 10cm-long cut over the back of the victim's head and a 5cm-long cut over his upper back.
The 71-year-old condominium gardener was sentenced to 10 weeks' jail on Monday (Dec 4) after he pleaded guilty to a single charge for voluntarily causing hurt using a weapon of offence.
Sim was also required to pay a compensation of S$128 to the victim through the investigation officer.
The court heard that Sim and the 64-year-old victim, cleaner Tan Im Choon, were both working at Rafflesia Condominium when the offence took place.
Before the incident, both Sim and Mr Tan had frequent disputes with each other owing to what court documents called "a shared unpleasant history". It was not disclosed in court what this unpleasant history involved.
On the afternoon of July 28 last year, Mr Tan had just ended his duties for the day when he met Sim outside a toilet located on the first floor of the condo.
After Mr Tan called Sim "a fat guy" in Hokkien, a verbal dispute broke out between the two.
When asked by District Judge Christopher Goh if there was more to the dispute, Sim said that Mr Tan had also called him a transgender in Hokkien and taunted him for not daring to hit him.
At the time of the dispute, Sim was holding on to a garden hoe as he was still working, said Deputy Public Prosecutor (DPP) Tan Shi Yun.
During the verbal dispute, Mr Tan shouted aggressively at Sim and gestured for Sim to hit him.
Having lost his temper, Sim held the garden hoe high and struck Mr Tan twice as Mr Tan was walking away from him.
Mr Tan ran away from Sim immediately after he was struck on the neck and upper back area but Sim continued to pursue Mr Tan while still holding on to the hoe.
Sim only stopped after a condo management staff intervened and took the hoe away from him.
Seeing Mr Tan bleeding from his neck, the staff called the ambulance and the police were later notified of the incident by the Singapore Civil Defence Force.
Mr Tan was sent to Tan Tock Seng Hospital and Sim was arrested at the scene on the same day.
In seeking a jail term of at least two months and two weeks and up to three months, DPP Tan said that even though the garden hoe is less egregious than a knife, it is still a weapon which could potentially inflict great harm.
She added that while the victim did not have to undergo sutures for his cuts, there were injuries as a result of the assault.
During mitigation, Sim apologised to the court and said that his actions were because he was "very angry" and unable to control himself after Mr Tan called him a transgender in Hokkien.
For voluntarily causing hurt with a garden hoe, Sim could have been jailed for up to seven years, fined or caned, or with any combination of these punishments.
